From the Land of Snow
by AnthrimaJoker
Summary: Miru came from the snowy forests north of the Kingdom. She helped Link on his adventures, but all of that was over. They needed to part ways, and she wasn't going to let him see her cry. Slight AU OoT


**A/N: Ocarina of Time belongs to Nintendo. All I own is my OCs.**  
**This is just a little something I'll expand on over time.**

**From the Land of Snow**

* * *

The fight was over. Everything we had worked for was over, actually. I pushed my hair back out of my face, looking over the room. The family would take care of the blood and broken tiles, the burned tapestries and discarded arrows. Off to the side, Link and Her Majesty were talking with dumb smiles and gentle gestures. Out of courtesy, I didn't stare long; I didn't need to look to be able to hear what they were saying. Fang was lying outside where we had left him. Hopefully no one had moved his body. I gathered my strength, stood up despite the vertigo that told me it was wiser to stay sitting, and trekked outside toward the moat that separated Hyrule Town from the field.

The clouds hadn't quite cleared, instead looking even heavier with rain as time wore on. Rain was appropriate. Rain felt right. The breeze was cool and tasted lightly of smoke, no doubt from villagers beginning to burn any trace Ganon left in their lives. And in a heap at the bottom of the moat was my tawny brown Wolfos. There was no sign of life that I could see. No flicker of fire in his eyes, no patient wave to his tail. Fang was dead. Right away, I started pulling rope from my pack. There weren't any posts I could use to help pull him out, but I wasn't deterred by the thought of doing it myself. I dove into the icy water and tied the rope around his thick chest. Then, once back on land, I dug my heels into the soft earth of Hyrule Field and tugged as hard as I could. He didn't move much.

The scent of oak was the only indication someone was close before a gloved hand grabbed the thick rope. The weight was infinitely easier to bear, though I wasn't much comforted by the company. "Let me help you." I gave tacit approval of his help, neither shrugging him away nor verbally acknowledging he was even there. I just continued to pull on the rope until we had both gotten Fang out of the water and onto the grass.

"Thank you," I muttered. If I hadn't known firsthand how good his hearing was, I probably would have said it a little louder. Or not. I wasn't really interested in his company, anyway. But he was just standing there, watching me. Link was always quiet, but this felt different. The air between us was heavy and getting heavier by the second. I turned my head from him, staring at Fang's prone body. I'd be damned if I cried now. "You've got to go back, Link." Thankfully a short display of lightning and the resulting thunder drowned out what was something between a whimper and muted sob. I took a deep breath to steady myself. "I heard Her Majesty Princess Zelda talking about sending you back. So what are you doing out here?"

"We're friends, Miru. I want to talk."

Friends, though lovely, aren't what I wanted. But what should I have expected him to say? We hadn't known one another long enough to justify my feelings, and I had no right to ask him to stay. "We have nothing to talk about. Ganon is dead; my brother is avenged. Now we go our separate ways." I glanced back at him, then past him. There was an owl in a tree; it was easier to focus on than the man before me.

His feet crunched in the dry grass when he shifted his weight. "I know you better than that."

"You just think you do." He didn't like that, so I continued before he could start. "I only helped you so I could sleep better at night. Now we walk away. That's how this ends."

"That doesn't mean I want it to be." I could feel it; he was staring at me, waiting for something to give. He was strong, stubborn, and fairly observant for someone that missed seven years of his life. Perhaps he saw through… No. I was too good at hiding. He didn't want me to pull the veil back from what he thought me to be. This criminal-turned-friend was never really a friend at all. That's what I wanted him to see. It's what he needed to see.

In my need to distract myself from his attention, I knelt beside Fang and rolled his body over. There were various cuts and gashes on his forelegs and chest. The killing blow appeared to be a stab in his gut. One of my hands was pressed against the wound, my other against his face, smoothing his fur. My friend was beautiful, even in death. Damn it. My lip was quivering a little. "Go on, Link. You've got to go, and I've got to bury Fang."

"Can't we just talk, Miru?"

I had to work to not actually snap at him. "No."

Faster than I thought he could, the blonde man reached down, grabbed my wrist, and jerked me to my feet. His face was inches from mine, blue eyes sharp as an eagle's. "Fine. I'll talk and you'll listen." I tested his grip, pulling against him gently, but he only tightened his hold on me. "I just killed the most powerful man on the planet, avenged your brother, and freed Hyrule from tyranny, and you want to play the distance card now? We're friends. I care about you. I don't want to leave you behind."

I frowned at him, "Friends? You think we're friends?" Fori was my friend. Fang was my friend. Link… "We weren't, never were that I noticed. But if you think we are, then know that I don't want to be."

He released me, tilting his head a bit and squinting. "What… What did you just say?"

"I don't want to be friends, Link. I have accomplished my goal. I. Don't. Need. You. Anymore."

There was a pause. We stared at each other. Fori would have been a comfort, perched on my shoulder and glaring at Link in the way that always made me smile. It would have broken the tension and shown me what kind of idiot I was being. But Link sighed and stepped back. "Okay. I'll go. Have a nice life, Miru." The words were cold, and they hurt me, but it was a dull pain I had been prepared for. He turned on his heel, the sword and shield clanking against one another as he did.

He took a few steps before two words slipped from my mouth: "You too." They were muttered, soft, and much more sincere than anything else I had said since the sun had risen that morning. I could've sworn there was a hitch in his following step, as though he had understood what I said, but I shrugged it away. He continued walking and didn't look back. So I grabbed hold of the rope around Fang once more and made my way to a quiet place I could bury him.


End file.
